Michael Jackson has been known for decades as the ‘undisputed King of Pop’, despite his rocky life. Where did that life begin?
Michael Jackson was born in 1958, in a city named Gary, Indiana. When Michael was around ten years old and the Jackson 5 began seeing success, the family relocated to Los Angeles to pursue a musical career.
Read on to learn more about Michael Jackson’s well-documented upbringing.
Stepping Stones to Greatness
Michael Jackson was one of ten children, five of whom would go on to form part of the world-famous Jackson 5. He was born to a musical family, with his father playing rhythm and blues guitar and his mother clarinet and piano.
The small, two-bedroom home would house the bulk of the Jackson family for nearly a decade as Michael grew up. Reportedly, Jackson’s upbringing was one of struggle, particularly where his father was concerned. In many interviews, Michael expressed the pain he suffered as a child, being forcibly pushed by his father to succeed.
In fact, the desire for his sons to succeed overwhelmed every other aspect of family life. The Jackson brothers regularly recalled not having a ‘normal’ childhood, or home. In an interview, Jermaine Jackson recalled: “None of us can remember him holding us or cuddling us,” as a key example. There’s a video on YouTube exploring the childhoods of the Jackson brothers.
Upon discovering the musical talents of his children, Joe Jackson, the father, allegedly became a monstrous man. While Michael was growing up, he was subjected to beatings and gruelling exercise regimes. They would rehearse incessantly, for many hours each day. One article explains that if any brother got a dance step wrong, Joe would order them to break a branch from a tree. Then, he’d beat them with it.
In 1967, the group found success and signed with a record label. At this point, Joe Jackson uprooted his family from Indiana and directed them to Los Angeles. However, the success of the trio would be short-lasting. In 1973, after a string of plummeting sales, the group split up.
Michael had already started a solo career, despite being extremely young. After the group disbanded, he continued this career and would rise to absolutely greatness in almost no time at all.
Singing Solo
Michael Jackson was almost a household name by the eighties. Although he was a long way from his childhood in terms of success, it still haunted him. He still had tendencies to rehearse and perform non-stop. As a result of the bullying at the hands of his father, Michael remained extremely self-conscious and paranoid for many decades.
However, that didn’t stop Michael finding incredible success in the music industry. Having been an avid singer since growing up in Gary, Indiana, Michael’s talent only expanded with time. He quickly became known as the King of Pop and released hit after hit, topping the charts with regularity.
There was a great post on Twitter in 2020 highlighting how Jackson’s music quite literally reached everyone in the world.
As a natural and gifted performer, Michael even created iconic dance moves. He helped popularize the Robot, and invented the moonwalk years later. Without any doubt, he was a show stopper, and the fans absolutely loved him.
Although his mental health began to take its toll as the years wore on, Michael always remained a cult icon. He donned several outfits that would be mimicked a million times over, and spawned countless impersonators.
Sadly, while Jackon did experience continued success even in the later years of his life, he would still experience struggles. There were many controversies, allegations against Jackson, and numerous rumours spawned by the press. To many, he became known as “Wacko Jacko”, a name he hated.
Jackson tragically passed away in 2009, aged 50. The boy that grew up in a small home in Indiana had come a very long way but ultimately succumbed to that which ends the lives of many stars: drugs. He was found dead after experiencing a heart attack, brought up by drug intoxication.